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Chapter 8: The Mountain Path
It was unclear whether it was night or day, the thick, murky grey clouds had diminished any light from the sky. There was indeed a narrow pass between two mountains and the group ventured forward. "The settlement of Mountain Hall is not far from the end of this pass." Oswyn shouted as the wind and the snow became heavier, almost violent. Gaerdir, walking on the snow as opposed to walking through it like the rest of his party, pushed ahead, alarmed. The weather had become much more harsh and Gaerdir felt it too unnatural. He used his heightened senses and heard a voice in the wind, which terrified him. "I hear a voice against the wind!" Gaerdir exclaimed. He felt the malevolence behind it. All of the group could now hear what Gaerdir heard. Suddenly a large bolt of lightning hit the top of the adjacent mountain and a large boulder came crashing down on their position. Most were swift enough to react and jumped out of the way, but some had been hit by part of it. "We cannot traverse this pass with this interference!" Mistanith shouted as the group tried to press on with the unnatural weather against them. "Wait!" Gaerdir shouted. "There is another." Indeed, he heard another voice on the wind. It was clearer and he felt the power behind it more benevolent in nature. He heard the audible words "Losto Hithaeglir, sedho, hodo, nuitho i ’ruith!" "What does the other voice say?!" Ferwyn asked. "It is a counter spell!" Gaerdir answered, as the weather became less violent and calmer. "Sleep, Misty Mountains, be still, lie still, hold your wrath." "Then we are being aided!" Mistanith smiled. "This is our chance to press on!" She led the group round the pass further, going deeper into the mountain passage. Upon turning a corner, she could see figures in the distance, with one figure much larger than the others, and halted the group. "What you see?" Suka asked. "Orcs I believe," was the reply. "And what looked like a mountain troll." "Orcs?" Suka snarled and readied his weapons. "There looked to be a small cover for me, where I can ready my arrows. The pass is too narrow for us to pass by them unnoticed. We must fight them." The group readied their weapons, including Oswyn, who unsheathed a sword. "It has been some time since I swung a sword, but I was rather proficient with one back in my day." Boendal crept forward and huddled himself under the snow, and out of sight. Mistanith vaulted to her hiding spot and the rest readied themselves, arm-to-arm, blocking any passage by them. They were now visible to the orcs and troll, who charged forward. As orcs passed the hiding spot, Mistanith let loose her arrow into the back of one of the orcs and Boendal reared up from the snow with a surprise attack on the orcs. The rest charged forward and aided them. It was a bewildered fight. The troll was kept busy by Oswyn, Ferwyn and Gaerdir while Suka, Boendal and Mistanith slew the orcs ably. The troll, eventually worn down by his attackers, screeched at Gaerdir, who stood frozen, terrified of his foe. He dropped his spear and started running away from the action. He felt safe to return once Ferwyn had plunged his sword up through the troll's chin and heard the shudder of the ground beneath him as it fell dead. Suka looked at the armour of the orcs more closely. "Gundabad orcs." He proclaimed. "Took my people. Torture. Blood. Kill Gundabad orcs." The group understood and carried on once more, slightly shaken from their battle. They walked along the pass for some time before Gaerdir and Mistanith saw a dim light ahead of them. It looked like a fire, and they warned the group to ready themselves. They slowly walked round and saw a large man sitting by a fire near a cart and a tent. Mistanith approached first, her new blade crafted by Gaerdir and Merileth in hand. "Who are you, sir? Friend or foe?' The man turned around and saw a familiar face in the group. "Oswyn!" He laughed. "Asric?" Oswyn looked surprised. "What are you doing here?" "The usual!" Asric chuckled as he embraced Oswyn. "Are these friends of yours?" "They are." Oswyn seemed somewhat sheepish. "Very good!" he boomed. "Come, sit! Warm yourselves by my fire!" The group were grateful and huddled around the makeshift fire. "You are kind, my good man." Gaerdir said. "What brings you to such a place?" "Much like Oswyn, I am a trader. Of anything I come across. Why are you all here?" "We seek a Blue Wizard." Mistanith answered. "We believe he is not far from here. Have you seen anything?" "No," he replied. "I haven't seen any Blue Wizard. Why do you seek him?" "He has answers for us. We believe a war is coming for the North." "I see..." He quickly changed subject. "You will be weary and hungry from this cold journey. Have some soup. It has special ingredients that warm the heart and relaxes the body." Gratefully, the group sipped from the bowl Asric passed around. Boendal finished it in gulps, leaving none for Oswyn. The group noticed that quickly and rather unnaturally, they were falling asleep around Asric's warm fire.